Dierks Bentley's Top Highlights of 2013

Birthing a bar and a new baby boy (Knox) are just a few of Dierks Bentley's accomplishments in 2013. Raising money for worthy causes,and giving back to the fans and "Home" country were all huge themes as well.  Check out our list (in no particular order) and let us know if there's any we missed!

1. Performing on The Grammy's: Miranda Lambert brought her tourmate and our DB Congress president to The Grammys back in February. They performed their #1s "Over You" and "Home." Dierks said, "To perform on the Grammys will be one of the coolest things ever. I am thrilled beyond belief." We were thrilled to see him on our televisions at an awards show! Watch here.
2. Opening Dierks Bentley's Whiskey Row:  Opening a bar was something that Dierks always wanted to do.  So, on July 4th the bar with his namesake opened in Scottsdale, AZ. The bar has a 1920's feel with a modern country vibe, warm wood surroundings and a 360-degree stage. It prides itself on being a technologically advanced bar as well as having taps at every table. The menu is American Gastropub with a twist. Dierks has been known to frequent his own bar several times since the opening, so it definitely needs to be a part of a DRT.  Check it out here!
   
   
3. CMA Fest: Ah Lenny Kravitz, not sure what he was doing at CMA Fest, but if you witnessed that fiasco, you know what came afterwards. Dierks knew he totally had to get the crowd back after that, and boy did he deliver! His performance was killer, even jumping into the crowd. Storme Warren even said that Dierks Bentley had the most applause of anyone at the fest! “I don’t have a hometown, I have a home country,” he said. “This song is called ‘Home’ and I’m sending it out to all the guys and girls that keep this country safe. This song is for them.”
4. Country Cares Benefit Concert honoring the fallen firefighters in his home state of Arizona! It was an emotional, joyous and sad, but successful evening in Arizona at the Country Cares Concert. The event, headlined by AZ native Dierks Bentley, who brought in Randy Houser, The Band Perry and David Nail to play, raised more than $476,000 for the Granite Mountain Hot Shots' families. Dierks introduced a new song, "Here On Earth" - a tribute to his dad and all 19 firefighter heroes who perished in the Yarnell Hill wildfires near Prescott.
5. ACM Party For A Cause in Vegas: Day two of the outdoor music and philanthropic event was headlined by Dierks himself. He brought the party as well as Sheryl Crow, who came out and sang, and Tim McGraw who  presented a military family with a new home.
6. Finding Jake: Severe thunderstorms aren't liked by many dogs and Jake is no exception. On January 13th, Dierks beloved companion jumped a fence at the house and ran off. Dierks took to social media to rally fans and friends to help find Jake.  In just a few hours, Dierks' wife, Cassidy, notified him that someone posted on Facebook that Jake had been found. Jake was almost hit by a car but was saved by Anna Belle. Dierks was no doubt elated. He tweeted "One of the happiest days of my life. Grown men don't cry.....yeah right."
   
   
7. Record Breaking MM4K:  Because of Dierks Bentley, kids have hope.  Raising over $307,000 for Vanderbilt Children's Hospital in the Miles and Music For Kids event, Dierks broke all previous years' records!  Guest appearances by Luke Bryan, Jake Owen, Brett Eldredge, Easton Corbin and Chase Rice made 2013 a huge success!
8. His baby boy Knox: Dierks announced at LCB9 that he and Cass were expecting a baby boy. Already having two girls, he was thrilled. Well, Baby Boy Bentley arrived on October 9th. Dierks tweeted his admiration for his wife "well...our boy knox is here! about to have the best tasting cold beer of my life! so proud of my wife. she rocked it. crazy stuff. #beerme"
9. Spends Labor Day Running:  With a killer time of 21:38 in the 5k Franklin Classic, Dierks was a little worried about his competition. "These girls look hard core!" he tweeted, referring to daughters Evie and Jordan.
   
   
   
10. Hosting the ACM Honors:  For the second consecutive year, Dierks hosted and performed with Ricky Skaggs.  He "blending informality and irreverence made possible by the lack of network television cameras with a genuine appreciation of the night's award winners," according to USA Today.
    
    
    
11. Locked and Re-loaded Tour with Miranda Lambert. Dierks has said that some of the best times he has had out on the road have been with Miranda and her crew. Well, the two friends joined up to tour together again in 2013 and gave fans all across the country a night to remember at every tour stop. Dierks' set list closed out with a patriotic, cell phones in the night sky, "Home."  Collaborations included "Bad Angel," Goyte's "Someone That I Used To Know" and "King of the Road."
12. The NEW DB Congress T-Shirts now available exclusively to congress members in the dierks.com store.  The design was personally approved by Dierks himself!
    
    
    
13. Giving away guitars and experiences:  Dierks found a way to give back to the fans in a big way.  During each show, he pulled a fan on stage to play his guitar during, "Lot of Leaving Left To Do" and signed and handed a brand new Fender to a fan at the end! Many DB Congress reps were happy recipients!
    
    
    
14. Dierks is featured on other artists' albums...The David Mayfield Parade (Tempted), Brad Paisley (Outstanding In Our Field), Terri Clark (Golden Ring) and The Cadillac Three (The South).
15. Bourbon In Kentucky, debuts on radio and gets fans fired up, but was quickly replaced with the lead single from upcoming Riser album  after high demand for "I Hold On." Watch live from the Grand Ole Opry:
    
    
16. I Hold On: Dierks' latest emotional and personal single received national television exposure when he and the band were able to perform it on both The View and America's Got Talent. Country radio got behind the song, pushing it to #21 on the Billboard Airplay charts (#20 as of Jan 5th charts), and fans organically posted what they hold on to.
17. Last Call Ball 9:   Having to cancel LCB8 due to his dad's death in June 2012, Dierks shared his personal feelings with his fan club, with a acoustic set featuring new music, and lots of heartfelt conversation.
18. In memory of George Jones: Country music icon and Dierks' friend George Jones passed away this year. The Possum's final concert turned into a tribute on November 22nd in which many country artists performed, including Dierks who sang "I Always Get Lucky With You."
    
    
19. Dierks announced the title for his next album, "Riser." An initial Fall release date was pushed back and we are all waiting with excitement for an announcement soon for a 2014 release date.  Get caught up on all our exclusive DB Congress interviews with Riser songwriters and producers here.

Leave a comment and we will draw a winner for a 2014 Country Music Hall of Fame calendar featuring Dierks on September!  Drawing to be held January 1, so post your thoughts now!

Dierks Bentley Guest Blogs for CNN, Remembers His Friend George Jones

Remembering George Jones. WSM's Eddie Stubbs is hosting a special tribute to George Jones tonight until midnight. Go to wsmonline.com to listen live right now! 

Also, if you cannot be there in person, tune in at 10 AM/CT tomorrow,Thursday, May 2 to hear the George Jones service live on 650 AM and WSMOnline.com from The Grand Ole Opry.

In a special guest blog for CNN, Dierks reflects on the life and loss of his dear friend, George Jones. Read his heartfelt message below: 
 
"Damn it, I knew I needed to get in touch with George when I'd heard he was ill, that he had been admitted to the hospital for respiratory ailments. How did I let this happen?"
 
Those where my initial thoughts sitting on the tarmac at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport reading the texts and e-mails about George Jones's death Friday morning.
 
George was a friend, a country music legend, an influence to me and to countless other musicians.
 
If you aren't able to fully hear and appreciate George Jones' voice, you really can't fully appreciate country music. His voice opens up country music's depth and power. You feel it or you don't. It helps to have done some living and to have had your heart broken, like George did. And it really helps if you can hang around one of its greatest singers, which I was fortunate enough to do over the years.
 
During a show at the Ryman Auditorium in the mid-'90s, I heard the great bluegrass singer Peter Rowan say that if you have a musical hero, you should do anything you can to be near that person. For him that meant driving Bill Monroe's tour bus. For me, it meant hanging around Terry Eldredge, my hero when I moved to Nashville, and the lead singer of a band called "The Sidemen," which played Tuesdays at the Station Inn.
 
Terry idolized George Jones. It was through him that i began to "hear" George, not just listen to him. There is a big difference between listening and hearing. I had listened to George growing up with my dad, a big country fan. I had listened to him in high school again, when I discovered Hank Williams Jr. and found out Hank also loved George. But it wasn't until I was in Nashville and hanging out with Terry that I finally heard George Jones. I finally got it. The tone and the ache of his voice clicked. I heard how every word George sang was first filtered through a broken heart.
 
We became friends eventually. From time spent together backstage at the Grand Ole Opry, visits at the home of George and his wife, Nancy, dinner at his favorite O'Charley's or Logan's Roadhouse, I cherished every moment in his presence, getting to hear firsthand accounts of stories I had read, the jokes and the laughter, the love between him and Nancy.
 
Having the opportunity to sing to George from the Opry stage for his 75th birthday in 2006 and to record in the studio together are unforgettable highlights of this crazy honky tonk dream.
 
People will always say that "He Stopped Loving Her Today" was George's best song and perhaps the greatest country song of all time. I certainly wouldn't disagree. But do yourself a favor and dig a little deeper. One of those nights when you are feeling down or lonesome, instead of going to the usual modern day distractions, grab some whiskey and listen to "A Picture of Me (Without You)," "The Cold Hard Truth," "A Good Year For The Roses," or my favorite, "The Door." Put your heart in George's hands and trust that he will take care of it.
 
That is what great country music (at least my favorite kind) and great country singers do; that is what country is all about: consoling the lonely, letting you know someone else has been there and has felt the way you do. It's about walking you through the hard times.
 
My dad was a member of this country's greatest generation. He grew up in The Depression and fought in WWII. There aren't many left. George is a member of country music's greatest generation. And there are only a handful of those men and women left. Go to their shows, talk to them if you can. Let them know how much you appreciate their music and if you are lucky enough, their friendship. Let them know the impact their singing or songwriting has had on your life. But don't do it for their sake, do it for your own.
 

So that when they are no longer with us, you might feel just a little less sad."



 

Dierks Duets "Golden Ring" With Terri Clark

Dierks Bentley once said he's not a good harmonizer, but his duet with Terri Clark on her new album, "Classic," proves him wrong.  The Tammy Wynette and George Jones classic, Golden Ring, blends Terri and Dierks' voices beautifully! Listen below.



According to Country Weekly, "She let her duet partners pick what songs they wanted to sing with her, which helped determine the final track list."

A few months ago, Terri tweeted this picture of her and Dierks Bentley on Twitter with this quote:

“Dierks Bentley in the studio. Sang the George Jones and Tammy Wynette classic "Golden Ring" with me for my new record. He killed it !!” 

You can download the whole album or just Track 6 featuring Dierks HERE.

COUNTRY WEEKLY FEATURES ANGELA, DIERKS AND GEORGE

You may remember the "Dierks is Her George Jones" blog I did back in December 2009. Well, I thought it was such a powerful story that I emailed it to Steve Morley at Country Weekly, thinking it would be great for the "Draw A Star" section. He loved it so I put him in touch with Angela Mueller, DB Congress rep from Wisconsin, who created the Dierks Bentley illustration from Andrew Allen's photo, for her grahics design class.

True to his word, Steve featured Angela's artwork in the March 22, 2010 issue of Country Weekly magazine, page 56. Not only that, but he gave the story the entire page of Stars Up Close!

So Steve, you are our DB Congress honorary DBC Rep of the Month! Thanks so much for all your Dierks and DBC support! It means the world to us!

As for the rest of you readers, please go out and buy the March 22 issue and show your support for Country Weekly! You might even want to send a "thank you" email to Steve!

Congratulations, Angela! I know you're on Dierks Cloud #9!

~Ronna
DB Congress Chair

DIERKS BENTLEY IS HER GEORGE JONES

At age 15, Angela believed all the stereotypes about country music--country is about tractors, dogs, trucks, etc. And while country music does mention all those things, she had no idea it was so much more.

"My dad had always been a country fan and started playing it more whenever I rode in his truck with him. I scowled at it most of the time," admits Angela, a DB Congress rep in Wisconsin. "But then I heard, 'What Was I Thinkin' and my whole world was turned around. I had even heard my dad talking about that song's music video and never paid any attention until I heard it on the radio. I remember thinking, 'this song is awesome! What was I thinkin' not listening to more country?' Then I watched the music video and that was it. I was countrified by Dierks Bentley!"

Today, Angela is a Senior at St. Norbert College in De Pere, WI, near Green Bay, where she is about to graduate with a degree in Communication and Media, with a minor in Graphic Design.

"Over the years I collected all Dierks' albums as they came out. My whole life I wrote my own music, and continued to do so with the influence of Dierks. I drifted in and out of country music but remained a true Dierks fan throughout the years.

My older brother Phil deployed to Iraq late 2006, and then my fiance, Charlie deployed to Iraq a few months later. Those were some hard, lonely months I faced worrying about them while they served our country. I have never gone through anything more trying, stressful and fearful in my life and I am SO GRATEFUL that they made it back safe.

What helped me get through it? I wrote my own music to cope, but mostly spent my time listening to Dierks when I was really down and out (in fact I always listened to him whenever I was sad about anything or having a bad day). His music is just so real, pure and anyone can relate to it. It's really HIM singing the songs and that's what makes the difference. He writes his songs from his heart. His music helped me get through those deployments."

For a Computer Graphics class project, Angela was tasked with choosing a photo to produce her own stylized illustration (a composition of different colors, tones and shapes chosen by the artist to represent something or someone in real life). She used the program Adobe Illustrator to create the tones and shapes.

"What better way to show my inspiration and appreciation for Dierks than to make him my subject for this project? So I chose to do a photo of him. I spent days trying to find the right picture. The internet has a lot of pictures of him, but none that caught my eye. I found that the really awesome, soulful, meaningful pictures can be found on his facebook page where all the fans post their pictures of him. I sifted through that and narrowed down my choice. I found one by Andrew Allen that was perfect and emailed him for permission to use it.


It turned out better than I thought it would and I am really proud of it. I think it expresses exactly who Dierks is and how I feel about him--as well as how many other fans feel about him."


Now her little brother, Jimmy, is deployed to Afghanistan for 12 months, and she's finishing up school and feeling like life is testing her more than ever. "Sometimes I wonder how I make it through, but I do. I'm continuing to write music with a few partners, and I listen to Dierks ALL THE TIME to get me through the days. And now I'm a pure-nothin'-but-country fan."

"You know how Dierks loves George Jones? Well Dierks is my George Jones. Dierks is my hero and my inspiration. The story of his life, all he does with music, his family and the community is so amazing. He is a fantastic singer/songwriter/performer and an all-around good guy.

I just hope he gets to see the illustration someday. I got to meet Dierks at a concert at The Island Resort and Casino in Upper Michigan (photo at top). I tried to tell him how I felt, but I got all choked up. After the concert I saw him out by his tour bus and gave him a poster. I yelled to him as he was walking away, "Dierks, you're my George Jones!" but he didn't hear me.

Thanks for letting me share my work and the story behind it. I love being a part of Dierks' fan network!"

Sincerely,

A TRUE Dierks fan for life

Angela

DIERKS LEARNS FROM GEORGE JONES

Does it surprise you to know that Dierks Bentley and George Jones are friends? With Dierks' love of traditional country music and respect for the history of the genre, it seems like a natural fit to me. And Dierks readily admits he's learned a lot from The Possum.

One of my favorite DB songs is "Murder on Music Row" - a duet with GJ from the exclusive Cracker Barrell "Songs of the Year" CD from 2006. The duo's ad lib at the end of the song sounds like two friends just hanging out.

This weekend on America's Opry Weekend, Dierks Bentley takes vocal lessons from George Jones:

"In country music, being technically good is not what it’s all about. It's really about emotion in your voice and singing through a broken heart. There's a lot of people today that can technically sing really well, but have they had their heart broken, and can you hear that emotion in their voice? Not as many as probably the past. I learned that from George ... went out and got my heart broken a couple of times, just so I could sing halfway, nearly a tenth, a fifth of a percent of how good he can sing. That’s the biggest influence George has had on me."

The 9513 recently posted an interview with George Jones in which George mentions Dierks:

JT: Do you listen to any of these young artists on the radio?

GJ: No ma’am. I listen to Alan Jackson and George Strait. They’re still on the stations. And we like Sugarland too. Most of the new artists, they understand me. We’re good friends. Kenny Chesney is like my son, [along with] Dierks Bentley, and several of ‘em. They know I love traditional music and I know what they have to do. We still all go out and have a steak together; they’re good people and they do good work. It’s just ain’t what I like anymore.

On this weekend's America's Opry Weekend, Dierks is scheduled as an Opry Classic Spotlight: "Walk Through This World With Me (Live),” Dierks Bentley. Here's just a little taste of Dierks performing the song for George's 75th birthday celebration at The Grand Ole Opry on September 12, 2006:

Find out more about AOW here.

*Special thanks to Stephanie (DB Congress Historian) and Annie, DBC rep in Kentucky for contributing to this blog!